The longest waits from nomination to confirmation
Which federal judge waited longest between nomination and confirmation?
William A. Fletcher waited 639 days between nomination and confirmation, longer than any other Article III judge on record (Ninth Circuit · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998).
Article III nominees ranked by the days between the president nominating them and the Senate confirming them. Nominations that were never confirmed are not on the clock and are not listed.
| # | Name | Detail | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William A. Fletcher | Ninth Circuit · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 639 |
| 2 | Paul V. Gadola | Eastern District of Michigan · nominated 1987, confirmed 1988 | 540 |
| 3 | Richard Leroy Williams | Eastern District of Virginia · nominated 1979, confirmed 1980 | 539 |
| 4 | Susan Oki Mollway | District of Hawaii · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 531 |
| 5 | James Leon Holmes | Eastern District of Arkansas · nominated 2003, confirmed 2004 | 524 |
| 6 | Timothy B. Dyk | Federal Circuit · nominated 1999, confirmed 2000 | 484 |
| 7 | Sean Francis Cox | Eastern District of Michigan · nominated 2005, confirmed 2006 | 479 |
| 8 | Thomas Lamson Ludington | Eastern District of Michigan · nominated 2005, confirmed 2006 | 479 |
| 9 | Peter G. Sheridan | District of New Jersey · nominated 2005, confirmed 2006 | 479 |
| 10 | Diane Gujarati | Eastern District of New York · nominated 2019, confirmed 2020 | 478 |
| 11 | Sonia Sotomayor | Second Circuit · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 464 |
| 12 | Raymond M. Kethledge | Sixth Circuit · nominated 2007, confirmed 2008 | 463 |
| 13 | Mary Geiger Lewis | District of South Carolina · nominated 2011, confirmed 2012 | 460 |
| 14 | Rebecca R. Pallmeyer | Northern District of Illinois · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 447 |
| 15 | M. Margaret McKeown | Ninth Circuit · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 444 |
| 16 | Dennis W. Shedd | Fourth Circuit · nominated 2001, confirmed 2002 | 441 |
| 17 | Richard Lesley Voorhees | Western District of North Carolina · nominated 1987, confirmed 1988 | 441 |
| 18 | Michael W. McConnell | Tenth Circuit · nominated 2001, confirmed 2002 | 437 |
| 19 | Waverly David Crenshaw Jr. | Middle District of Tennessee · nominated 2015, confirmed 2016 | 432 |
| 20 | Dora L. Irizarry | Eastern District of New York · nominated 2003, confirmed 2004 | 423 |
| 21 | Paula Xinis | District of Maryland · nominated 2015, confirmed 2016 | 417 |
| 22 | Ivan L. R. Lemelle | Eastern District of Louisiana · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998 | 415 |
| 23 | Roger T. Benitez | Southern District of California · nominated 2003, confirmed 2004 | 413 |
| 24 | Albert Diaz | Fourth Circuit · nominated 2009, confirmed 2010 | 409 |
| 25 | Marsha Siegel Berzon | Ninth Circuit · nominated 1999, confirmed 2000 | 408 |
Questions
- Which federal judge waited longest between nomination and confirmation?
- William A. Fletcher waited 639 days between nomination and confirmation, longer than any other Article III judge on record (Ninth Circuit · nominated 1997, confirmed 1998).
- How long did the longest waits last in years?
- The five longest are William A. Fletcher (1.7 years), Paul V. Gadola (1.5 years), Richard Leroy Williams (1.5 years), Susan Oki Mollway (1.5 years) and James Leon Holmes (1.4 years).
- How is this list ranked?
- Article III nominees ranked by the days between the president nominating them and the Senate confirming them. Nominations that were never confirmed are not on the clock and are not listed.
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Computed from the FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-09-21. Verify against the primary source before relying.